


Stand By You

by Marvelous_Writer



Series: Day in the life of the Iron Family [2]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types, Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Crying, Dreams and Nightmares, Dreams vs. Reality, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hot Chocolate, Hurt Peter, Hurt Peter Parker, Hurt/Comfort, Irondad, Irondad & Spiderson, Mysterio did a number on Peter, Nightmares, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Gets a Hug, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker Whump, Peter Parker is a Mess, Poor Peter, Poor Peter Parker, Post-Spider-Man: Far From Home, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Precious Peter Parker, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Is a Good Bro, Tony Stark Lives, Tony Stark is the best dad ever, Whump, spiderson
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-13
Updated: 2019-07-13
Packaged: 2020-06-27 16:23:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19794583
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marvelous_Writer/pseuds/Marvelous_Writer
Summary: Peter lets out a shuddering breath, and turns his head so it’s resting on Tony’s chest, hearing his heartbeat underneath his ear. It’s steady and strong.“Was it about him again?” Tony asks after a moment.Peter silently nods against his chest. This wasn’t the first time Tony has witnessed him waking up from a nightmare about Beck. If anything, the dreams were getting progressively worse.“He’s gone. It was just a bad dream, Pete. He’s gone, I promise you.” Tony whispers.





	Stand By You

**Author's Note:**

> Title inspired by Rachel Platten's (amazing) song, "Stand By You."

_“Peter…” An all to familiar voice called in the distance._

_Peter sat up in bed as a shiver ran down his spine. He was in his room at the Stark cabin. His senses were silent, eerily so as he slowly got out of bed, hesitantly stepping out into the dark hallway, pausing for a moment to listen._

_“Peter…” The voice called to him again._

_He knew that voice._

_Walking the rest of the way down the hallway, Peter slowly made his way down the wooden stair case as quietly as he could. His eyes scanned the dark living room and kitchen as he came down, avoiding the last creaky step before walked over to the living room and stopped. He breathed out a shaky, silent breath through his mouth and wet his dry lips nervously._

_“Oh, Peter…” The voice called again._

_That’s when it clicked._

_Fear shot through Peter in an instant, his eyes widening._

_“B-Beck?” He whispered in disbelief._

_“That’s right.” Quentin’s voice came again, almost sounding amused._

_Peter tightly closed his eyes and shook his head, raising his hands to his head, fisting his hair in his hands. “N-No. Y-You’re dead. I-I saw you die in London. This isn’t real.”_

_“Oh, this is real alright, silly boy. You still don’t understand, after everything I’ve taught you.”_

_When Peter opened his eyes, he found himself outside of the cabin, in the dark woods. Peter darted his head around himself, squinting in the darkness._

_“You try to be the hero and save everybody. But deep down… you’re just a scared little boy.” Quentin’s voice echoed around him._

_Something brushed up against his leg and Peter jumped back with a frightened gasp, frantically looking around himself. When he looked up, he could see two golden eyes a few feet away from him. A low growling came from whatever it was, before more growls came around him, more golden eyes opening, blinking at him against the blackness of the night. Leaves crushed as the creatures came closer to him, their growling becoming louder and more vicious._

_Peter took a stumbling step back before he took off running as the creatures snarled, thundering footsteps behind him as they chased after him._

_“That’s right, Peter. Run. Run like the coward you are!” Beck sneered._

_No. Please no. No. No. No._

_Peter tripped on something and before he knew it he slammed into the ground roughly. He thought for sure that whatever those things were would have been on top of him by now… but they were gone. He cracked open his eyes, finding himself in a totally different setting._

_He was in a parking garage that was dimly lit with LED lights. Peter frowned as he looked down at himself, only to find himself wearing his homemade Spider-Man costume._

_“You’re no hero. You’re just a child playing dress-up in a pair of sweats.” Quentin spoke._

_A mirror slammed down on the ground inches away from his face, splitting the concrete ground at his feet, vibrations going up his legs from the impact. Peter took a stumbling step backwards, raising his hands defensively as he stared at his reflection._

_“Just look at yourself ... pathetic.” Quentin’s voice echoed. “What does Tony Stark even see in you? What does anyone see in you?”_

_Peter tried to ignore the sting of his words. He knew what this was. All of this was fake. Beck was just trying to mess with his mind._

_“Stop it!” Peter yelled, his voice echoing through the garage. “I’m not afraid of you, Beck!”_

_Quentin laughed menacingly. “No? Well… we’ll see about that.”_

_A loud cracking sounded above his head and Peter’s head shot up as the ceiling cracked, dust falling down onto him. Before he had a chance to react, the ceiling caved in, large chunks of concrete falling right on top of him._

_It was Homecoming night all over again._

_Peter gasped, desperately trying to breathe but the debris on top of him wouldn’t allow him to take a breath, let alone move._

_It was crushing him._

_He was going to be crushed to death._

_Peter clawed at the ground, trying to get out. He could feel his nails and fingertips splitting from him dragging them along the ground._

_I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe._

_In an instant, the ground opened up underneath him and he fell down into a dark abyss, spiraling downwards. Peter opened his mouth to scream but he hit the ground before he could._

_Only… he didn’t hit the ground._

_He was in water, freezing cold water._

_“You’re drowning in your own doubts!” Quentin yelled. “You are trying to live in a world that’s moved on without you for FIVE YEARS!”_

_Peter kicked his feet and began to quickly swim up, looking up to the surface of the water mere feet away from him. His lungs were burning, crying out for air._

_“Just look at them!” Quentin yelled, as Peter was shoved to the side by a powerful current, landing on the ground somewhere._

_His mind was racing as he gasped, trying to get air into his pleading lungs. Peter blinked his eyes open, feeling his wet eyelashes sticking together as he was met with the sight of Tony, Pepper and Morgan all sitting around the dinner table at the cabin, Tony and Pepper laughing at something Morgan must’ve said. They looked… happy. Content. Like a family._

_“They were better off without you. The WORLD was better off without you.”_

_Peter closed his eyes tightly, clenching his fists in front of him. When he came back from the Snap, he had felt so out of place, an outcast in the world he grew up in. He felt like a burden and even wished that he’d never returned at all._

_“You know I’m right.” Beck’s voice rang through his head._

_When he opened his eyes, the scene had changed again and he was now outside of the Stark cabin and he was wearing his new, red and black Spider-Man suit. The sun was shining in the sky, the birds were chirping away… like everything was normal, like he wasn’t in a horrible dream he couldn’t escape from._

_But that was what Beck wanted him to believe._

_Peter pushed himself up from his stomach, frowning as he scanned his surroundings. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary._

_A scream tore through the air, breaking the peaceful silence._

_Fear flooded through him as he recognized that scream._

_It was Morgan._

_Peter jumped to his feet and took off in the direction of the house, not even bothering to climb the steps as he leapt onto the porch, practically tearing the front door off of its hinges in a haste to get inside._

_When he stepped foot inside the house, he froze at the sight in front of himself._

_Quentin was standing there, grinning evilly, clad in his Mysterio costume, holding Morgan in one arm and in the other… a gun._

_Tony and Pepper were sitting on the couch, both having terrified expressions on their faces as the madman held their precious daughter at gunpoint._

_Peter breathed out shakily, raising his hands in surrender. “Beck… please l-let her go. They didn’t do anything to you. I did. Please… just let them go.”_

_Quentin still had that horrible, evil smirk on his face. “Really? You’re begging me right now?” The man asked, chuckling darkly. “This is too good. The Amazing Spider-Man… is begging me, to spare the lives of his family.” He says as he waves the gun around in the air threateningly._

_Peter’s trembling with fear where he stands, his eyes glued to Morgan’s terrified face as she looks between him and her parents._

" _But you’re wrong. Tony Stark ruined my life. He took my tech and claimed it as his own and he sabotaged my career!” Quentin furiously yelled, Morgan violently flinching in his grip._

_Quentin closed his eyes and tilted his head to the side for a moment before looking back at Peter. “And you… you came and ruined my whole plan. I was supposed to be the hero. I could have given the people what they deserved, a true hero.” He said before pausing. “I warned you, Peter. I tried to get you out of the way but you just came back and ruined everything. You took EVERYTHING from me! And now… I’m going to take everything from you.”_

_All in a matter of seconds, Quentin raised the gun to Morgan’s head, his finger on the trigger._

_“Say goodbye, Spider-Man.”_

  
A strangled scream tore through Peter’s throat as his eyes snapped open, shooting up in bed, disoriented and petrified. 

He couldn’t stop _screaming._

Was it a dream or was it real? 

After all these months… he can’t tell the difference between the two anymore. 

“N-No.” Peter violently sobbed, pulling his knees to his chest, burying his face in his arms. 

The sound of hurried, stumbling footsteps came from down the hallway before a light was thrown on. But Peter didn’t stop screaming and crying. He couldn’t stop. All he could see was Morgan’s face and the gun pressed against her temple. 

“Pete?” 

Peter’s crying subsides for a moment and he lifts his head, seeing Tony standing by his bedroom door, the warm, golden hallway light pouring in his bedroom. Before he can answer, Tony walks in his room and before he knows it, the man’s pulling him into his arms. 

Peter fists the back of Tony’s t-shirt and lets himself break down again. He feels like everything around him is crumbling, the illusions of the nightmare coming to the forefront of his mind. He feels like he’s losing his mind. 

“It’s alright. It’s okay. I’ve got you… I’ve got you, Pete. Shh.” Tony softly says as he begins to card his fingers through Peter’s curls at the back of his head. 

Peter just shoves his head in the man’s collarbone and let’s out a whimper, feeling Tony rocking them slowly back and forth as he softly shushes him, continuing to run his hands through Peter’s hair. The movement calms him slightly and he lets himself close his eyes, breathing in the familiar, comforting smell of collongue and motor oil.

It takes a long time before Peter’s sobs taper down to congested sniffles. He’s still shaking, his face soaked with his tears, as is Tony’s shirt. The man is still gently rocking them back and forth, gently rubbing a comforting hand up and down Peter’s back. 

“You’re okay. You’re safe. You’re at the cabin.” Tony gently reminds him in a soft voice. 

Peter lets out a shuddering breath, and turns his head so it’s resting on Tony’s chest, hearing his heartbeat underneath his ear. It’s steady and strong. 

“Was it about him again?” Tony asks after a moment. 

Peter silently nods against his chest. This wasn’t the first time Tony has witnessed him waking up from a nightmare about Beck. If anything, the dreams were getting progressively worse. 

“He’s gone. It was just a bad dream, Pete. He’s gone, I promise you.” Tony whispers.

Peter sniffs, brows coming together as he pulls himself away from the man. His eyes search Tony’s face, fear creeping its way up through him. 

“W-What’s something o-only you would know?” Peter asks. 

Tony’s face falls a bit at the question, a sad and sympathetic expression coming over his features. He glances away from him for a moment, thinking the question over. 

“When you got hurt last month… and you were in the medbay… you told me that you were afraid of spiders.” Tony says after a moment.

Peter remembers that, even though the details are a bit fuzzy due to him being on pain medication at the time. But he remembers admitting that to Tony, who had spent Peter’s entire time in the medbay at his side. 

“You like to add gummy bears to your ice cream for some reason.” Tony grins down at him. “You’ve never seen Interstellar, which we should sit down and watch together sometime. And the first time I took you out on the road right after your permit test… you accidentally crushed the steering wheel because you were so nervous.” 

Peter breathed out a small laugh at the memory, reaching a hand up to wipe at his snotty nose. “I-It was your Audi e-tron too.” 

“The electric blue one.” Tony nods, smiling. 

Relief washes over him with the confirmation that this was all real. Tony was real. This wasn't an illusion. 

Peter breathes out through his mouth and rests his head against Tony’s chest again and the man’s hand comes back to rest against his back.

“He’s really gone?” Peter whispers.

“He’s gone, Pete. I promise you. He’s gone.” 

They stay there for several more minutes before Tony breaks the silence. 

“Wanna watch a movie? Maybe have some hot chocolate?” 

“Yeah. That sounds good.” Peter nods against his chest, pulling back, even though he doesn’t want to. 

Tony smiles and pats his shoulder before standing up from Peter’s bed, heading over to the door. Peter lets out a shaky breath and runs a hand through his hair as he untangles himself from his sheets and stands up, grabbing his, well, Tony’s MIT sweatshirt from his desk chair and throws it in before going over to the door, where Tony is waiting for him. 

Tony offers him a small smile before he turns and heads down the hallway towards the staircase with Peter following behind him, their bare feet padding on the wooden stairs. 

“Lights, FRI.” Tony murmurs once they’re downstairs and the living room and kitchen lights come on to a dim setting Tony set up for Peter and his enhanced senses. 

“You go tee up a movie and I’ll make the hot chocolate.” Tony says over his shoulder as he enters the kitchen. 

“Sure. Anything you want to watch?” Peter asks as he flops down on the couch. 

“Whatever you want, bud.” Tony answers back as he digs around in the lazy susan, pots and pans clanking together. 

Peter settled back into the couch and picked up the remote, turning the tv on. He brought up Netflix and went through their most recently watched movies, settling on Toy Story 2. A nice and calming movie that had nothing to do with magic, loud explosions, or illusions. 

He kept the movie on pause until Tony returned with two steaming mugs, handing one to him. Peter smiled slightly when he saw all of the cool whip in his mug. 

“Thanks.” Peter said before taking a small sip. 

Tony smiled in response and sat down beside him, kicking his feet up on the coffee table. Peter hit the play button as the opening credits began to roll. They sat in silence through the opening with Rex playing the Buzz Lightyear video game. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Tony asks after a few minutes, breaking the peaceful silence. 

Peter shrugged as he took another sip from his mug. He honestly didn’t want to talk about his nightmare because it only made it feel more real and he didn’t want to tell Tony about it because of the part where Quentin was holding a gun to Morgan’s head. Tony would then have his own set of nightmares about that, all thanks to Peter, unless he’s already had those kinds of dreams before.

“Well… whenever you want to, I’m here. Okay?” 

Peter nodded and turned his head in the man’s direction, meeting his warm gaze. Tony reached a hand out and gently pulled Peter’s head down closer to him, kissing the top of his head, his hand slipping down to Peter’s back. 

That gesture alone just screamed a thousand “I love you’s” all at once. Peter curled his legs up on the couch and kept his head against Tony’s shoulder as they went back to watching the movie. 

Sometime in between Woodey meeting Bullseye and Jessie and the toy store scene, Peter was fast asleep, feeling content and safe with Tony holding him close. 

And the nightmares stayed away for the rest of the night. 

**Author's Note:**

> My Tumblr: marvelous-writer (I take requests!)


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